WineLaw.ca
BC Reforms Charity Wine Auction Rules
- Friday, 22 November 2013 11:46
- Written by Mark Hicken
The BC government has announced that new rules regarding charity wine auctions are effective as of today. The new rules will permit the auction of privately donated wine, in smaller quantities without a permit and in larger quantities with a permit. The press release is here: Charities Benefit from New Liquor Auction Rules. These changes should assist with resolving the problems for charities that resulted from an earlier change in policy by the Liquor Control & Licensing Branch (see: BC Charity Wine Auction Update and BC to Permit Charity Wine Auctions, Problems Remain).
The new rules are brought into effect by Order-in-Council 507, effective November 22nd. Essentially, a new vendor category for alcohol is created under the Act for charitable auctions. A charitable auction which does not exceed certain amounts of alcohol (6 litres of spirits; 18 litres of wine; 51.2 litres of beer/cider/coolers) can proceed without a permit. Auctions for larger than the specified amounts will require a new permit which is available on application from the Licensing Branch for $50.
Auctions can be held by specified non-profit organizations or by charities, but in either case the auction proceeds must be used for charitable purposes (which means that fundraisers for the benefit of some non-profits and for political purposes are not allowed). An organization cannot hold an auction within 30 days of the last auction. There are reporting requirements and various other restrictions including not allowing consumption of auctioned liquor at the event.
The new regulations do not actually refer to private wine donations and it is not entirely clear on first reading how they are permitted for an auction. However, I have confirmed with the LCLB that they are permitted because the organization holding the auction is not a licensee under the Act (rather they are a permit holder, if required). The regulations indicate that the only restriction on sourcing auction liquor is that the product be commercially produced (i.e. not u-brew or u-vin product). The other restrictions related to alcohol sourcing in the Act and Regs do not apply because they apply to licensees. As as result, the holder of an auction can sell any product from any source including private donations so long as the product is commercially produced.
A policy directive is available here: Liquor Auctions and Private Re-sale of Liquor to LDB.
EU-Canada Trade Deal Unlikely to Affect BC Wine Industry
- Thursday, 24 October 2013 18:26
- Written by Mark Hicken
As has been widely reported in the mainstream media, Canada and the EU have reached agreement in principle for a free trade deal known as the Comprehensive Economic & Trade Agreement (more commonly referred to as CETA). Various stories have speculated on the effects of CETA upon the Canadian wine industry. It is not possible to comment with certainty upon any effects until such time as the actual text of the agreement is publicly available. However, it has become apparent from briefing notes, that it is unlikely that CETA will have any significant effect upon the BC wine industry. As has been previously reported, CETA does away with all tariffs on wine between Canada and the EU (in both directions). In practice and for the Canadian market, this means the removal of a very small (and basically insignificant) tariff that is currently applied to European wines entering Canada. It also requires some changes to the way that the LCBO (Ontario's liquor board) applies "cost of service" fees to wine sold in that province. However, it preserves the existing exclusive distribution channels for domestic wine in certain private retail stores (in BC, these are the VQA stores) and it preserves the ability of wineries to sell from their own tasting rooms (direct delivery). As a result, there appear to be very few effects on the BC wine industry. CETA may, in fact, provide benefits to BC wineries that use European products in their manufacturing processes as any Canadian tariffs on those products will be removed.
Canadian Fed Govt to Amend Shipping Law for Beer, Spirits
- Wednesday, 16 October 2013 14:18
- Written by Mark Hicken
Today's Throne Speech of Canada's federal government indicates that the federal law which restricts the interprovincial shipment of alcohol will be amended to permit the interprovincial shipment of beer and spirits. This move would extend the previous amendments of Bill C-311, which only applied to wine, so that all alcohol is covered. The text of throne speech simply says this: "our Government will amend the Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act to allow Canadians to take beer and spirits across provincial boundaries for their own use".
Unfortunately, the previous amendments which related to wine only have had limited effectiveness due to various provincial government moves which have blocked the spirit of the amendments: see Shipping Law Update for details. It is not clear whether or not the federal government would also consider introducing a "national personal exemption" as part of the new amendments - which would have the effect of completely opening up the country to interprovincial shipment.
BC Liquor Policy Review: Some Great Submissions
- Thursday, 10 October 2013 12:30
- Written by Mark Hicken
The BC Government's Liquor Policy Review is nearing the end of its initial consultation stage (only 3 weeks left), following which the Parliamentary Secretary responsible, John Yap, will prepare a report to the responsible Minister (Suzanne Anton) with recommendations for change. Thus far, the review panel has met with many stakeholder groups (see stakeholder meeting list here), received many submissions (see submissions list here) and received a huge amount of public input and comment via blog post, email and social media. Anyone intending to provide additional input should do so right away!
As would be expected in any review process such as this, the review panel has received a wide range of submissions covering off many different viewpoints and dealing with many different issues. The full list of submissions can be reviewed using the link above. However, I would like to highlight a few submissions which I think are particularly useful: Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (this well researched submission deals with reform of BC's wholesale pricing structure and with important distribution issues), BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association (deals with many licensing issues), Herb LeRoy Honourary Wine Envoy (deals with many issues of wineries), Liquor Policy Consultants - Dennis Coates and Bert Hick (deals with many issues from the perspective of two very knowledgeable consultants), and Victoria Police Department (deals with the problematic special occasion licensing system).
Finally, I must also recommend the submissions of Modernize Wine Association of BC (of which I am President) which deal with a wide range of issues including some of those covered by other groups above. If you would like a short summary of the Modernize Wine position, you can also read this op-ed piece from the Vancouver Sun written by John Skinner of Painted Rock Winery and myself: 5 Ways to Reform BC's Antiquated Liquor Laws.
BC Liquor Policy Review in Full Stride
- Sunday, 15 September 2013 18:52
- Written by Mark Hicken
The BC Government's liquor policy review is now firing on all cylinders. The official web site, asking for public comment, launched this past weekend. In addition, the Parliamentary Secretary responsible for the review, John Yap, has been doing extensive media interviews and is very active on social media, promoting the review and asking British Columbians for input. The purpose of the policy review is to ask stakeholders and the general public for their input on modernizing BC's liquor laws. The review has been attracting a great deal of positive media coverage: see BC Govt Launches New Website to Attract Public Opinion on Changing Liquor Laws, BC Launches Liquor Policy Review Website, BC Liquor Policy Review Website to Launch, and BC Taking Public Input on Changing Liquor Laws. If you care about modernizing BC's liquor laws, please take the time to submit your opinion on the site ...